Chapter 35: Millie – Summary and Analysis
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Millie is jolted awake in the middle of the night by the persistent ringing of the flat’s doorbell. She rushes downstairs in her robe and finds a uniformed man named Brian standing there, his eyes wild. He tells her that Reg has suffered a heart attack—not a bomb, but a heart attack, just like his brother. Millie had not seen this coming; she had been worrying about the bombs instead. Brian offers her a ride to the hospital on his motorcycle, and she wraps her arms around this stranger, a man Reg never mentioned, as they ride through the dark, rainy streets.
At the hospital, a nurse tells Millie there is nothing to do but wait. Reg lies in a coma in a room far down the hall, but Millie cannot bring herself to sit with his still body. She sits alone in the cold waiting room, wanting to be anywhere else—with Beatrix, with her mother, or simply far away. She feels abandoned and terrified, longing to run and never return.
Key Events
- Middle-of-the-night doorbell awakens Millie.
- Brian, a uniformed man Reg never talked about, delivers the news of Reg’s heart attack.
- Millie rides on Brian’s motorcycle to the hospital.
- The nurse tells Millie there is nothing to do but wait.
- Millie sits alone in the waiting room, unable to face Reg’s comatose body.
Character Development
This chapter reveals a new side of Millie: her deep vulnerability and fear of being left alone. Previously seen as a caretaker or steady presence, she now struggles with helplessness. Her immediate desire to flee—to go to Beatrix or her mother—shows her dependence on others for emotional support. The shock of Reg’s collapse forces her to confront mortality directly, a fear she had displaced onto the war’s bombs.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Waiting and Helplessness: The waiting room becomes a symbol of powerlessness. Millie can do nothing but sit, highlighting the cruelty of not knowing.
- Escape vs. Confrontation: Millie’s wish to run away contrasts with the necessity of staying. This tension reflects the broader wartime struggle between fleeing danger and facing duty.
- The Body as Shelter: Reg’s still, comatose body is a space Millie cannot enter, unlike the physical shelter they once shared. The heart attack, a failure of the body, shatters her sense of security.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter marks a crisis point for Millie. Reg’s heart attack shifts the focus from external wartime dangers to internal, personal loss. It tests Millie’s resilience and sets up a potential turning point in her relationship with Reg. Her reaction—wishing to escape—foreshadows later decisions and underscores the emotional toll of the war both at home and in private life.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does Millie feel she should have seen Reg’s heart attack coming?
She connects it to the heart attack that killed Reg’s brother, implying a family pattern she had ignored. She had been preoccupied with the threat of bombs, not with Reg’s health, and now feels guilty for her oversight.
2. What does Millie’s desire to “run far away” reveal about her state of mind?
It shows she is overwhelmed by fear and grief, unable to cope with the possibility of losing Reg. The waiting room is a space of unbearable stasis, and her instinct is to escape rather than stay and face the unknown.
3. Why does the chapter focus on the setting of the cold waiting room?
The waiting room emphasizes isolation and vulnerability. Millie is physically alone and emotionally cut off from Reg, Beatrix, and her mother. The cold reinforces her sense of emotional numbness and the harsh reality of her situation.